John Robinson Pierce ( born John Robinson Pierce , March 27, 1910 - April 2, 2002 ) is an American engineer and writer in the science fiction genre. His work covered a wide field of engineering and applied physics from radio communications , microwave technology, psychoacoustics to writing computer music and science fiction works of art.
| John Robinson Pierce | |
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| John robinson pierce | |
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| Date of Birth | March 27, 1910 |
| Place of Birth | Des Moines , Iowa , USA |
| Date of death | April 2, 2002 (92 years old) |
| Place of death | Sunnyvale , California , USA |
| A country |  USA |
| Scientific field | Electrical engineering , radio communication |
| Place of work | Bell Labs , Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
| Alma mater | California Institute of Technology |
| Academic degree | Ph.D |
| Famous students | Daniel Levitin |
| Awards and prizes |
 US National Science Medal Japan PrizeIEEE Medal of Honor |
Content
Biography
Born in Des Moines , Iowa , USA. Natives of the Midwest , the Pierce family moved from Iowa to Minnesota , and then to California . Back in school, John Pearce became interested in technology, after graduating from high school he entered the California Institute of Technology , and during his studies he was interested in the humanities, was fond of glider construction, having won several silver cups at rallies of gliders in San Diego . In 1933 he became a bachelor of science, in 1934 received a master 's degree , and in 1936 he defended his doctoral dissertation.
Jobs at Bell Labs
Since 1936, Pierce worked fruitfully at Bell Labs , where he was engaged in various studies and collaborated with many famous scientists, among his friends - Nobel laureate William Shockley . Here is just a short list of Pierce's works, giving an understanding of the spectrum of his interests as an engineer and scientist:
- Research and development of electronic lamps , in particular, joint participation with Rudolf Komfner in the creation of a traveling wave lamp ;
- The invention of the secondary electron multiplier ;
- Research in the development of magnetrons for radars and reflective klystrons ;
- Participation in the development of pulse-code modulation for digitizing analog signals (together with Claude Shannon and Bernard Oliver );
- A large role in the development of the first commercial communications satellite Telstar [1] . Arthur Clark for this work called Pierce "one of the two fathers of satellite communications" (along with Harold Rosen ) [2] .
Work After Bell Labs
Leaving Bell Labs, in 1970, Pierce became a professor in his native Caltech at the Department of Electrical Engineering, and was soon appointed chief engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory , which is one of NASA's research centers and is managed by the California Institute of Technology. In 1980, Pierce left Caltech and transferred to Stanford University to the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics , a computer science research center in music and acoustics, where he studied computer music as an honored visiting teacher (along with other computer pioneers music by Max Mathews and John Chowning ). One of the results of these works was the development of an octave-free musical scale of Bohlen-Pearce [3] .
Personal life
Until the last days of his life, Pierce supported his youthful passion for gliding, contributing in every way to the development of one of the oldest glider clubs in the United States in Los Angeles . In mature and later years, he lived in Berkeley Heights in the state of New Jersey , in Pasadena and in Palo Alto ( California ) [4] . Pierce outlived his wife. Son, John Jeremy Pearce (b. 1941), leads literary activities, becoming a writer in the genre of science fiction and editor of several magazines, including the famous science fiction magazine Galaxy Science Fiction . Daughter - Elizabeth Ann Pearce [5] . In the last years of their life, the Piers family gave large and well-known dinners at their home in Palo Alto, to which very diverse guests were invited and where conversations and discussions were held on topics ranging from space research to politics, healthcare and music of the 20th century. At one of these dinners, Daniel Levitin , a former student at Pierce, presented his book, Music and the Brain ”, Which later became a bestseller.
Awards and recognition
- 1947 - Morris Liebmann Prize [6] ;
- 1960 - Stuart Ballantyne Medal of the American Franklin Institute [7] ;
- 1962 - The Golden Dish American Academy of Achievements [8] ;
- 1963 - Edison Medal "for pioneering and leadership in satellite communications, for stimulating and contributing to electronic optics, traveling wave lamp theory, and the fight against noise in electronic streams" [9] ;
- 1963 - the US National Scientific Medal "for his outstanding contribution to the theory of communications, optics of electron beams and traveling wave lamps, and for leading research on global radio communications using artificial Earth satellites" [10] ;
- 1974 - John Scott Medal from the Franklin Institute [11] ;
- 1975 - IEEE Medal of Honor "for innovative proposals and experiments in the field of satellite communications, as well as for his contribution to the theory and design of a traveling wave lamp and electron beam optics" [12] ;
- 1977 - NAE Founders Award, National Academy of Engineering, USA [13] ;
- 1979 - Marconi Prize of the International Fund Guglielmo Marconi [14] ;
- 1985 - Japan Prize "for outstanding achievements in the field of electronics and communication technologies." Pierce was one of the first two winners of this honorary prize [15] ;
- 1995 - Charles Stark Draper Award "for the development of satellite communications technology" [16] .
- 2003 - posthumously introduced into the National Hall of Fame of the Inventors [17] .
John Pierce received several degrees of honoris causa :
- 1961 - D.Eng., Engineering College in Newark ,
- - D.Sc., Northwestern University [18] ;
- 1963 - D.Sc., Yale University [19] ,
- - D.Sc., Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute ;
- 1964 - ED, Carnegie Institute of Technology ;
- 1965 - D.Sc., Columbia University [20] ;
- 1970 - D.Sc., University of Nevada ;
- 1974 - LL.D., University of Pennsylvania [21] ,
- - D.Eng., University of Bologna ;
- 1978 - D.Sc., University of Southern California [22] .
Literary activity
In addition to books and technical articles, John Pearce published under the pseudonym JJ Coupling (fiction . JJ Coupling ) science fiction works, mostly short stories, journalistic essays and poems [23] .
Bibliography
- 1949 - “ Theory and Design of Electron Beams ” ( Eng. Theory and Design of Electron Beams );
- 1956 - "Electrons, waves and signals" ( Eng. Electrons, Waves and Messages ).
- 1930 - “Relics From the Earth” ( Eng. The Relics From the Earth );
- 1934 - “Swimming in the Void” ( Eng. Adrift in the Void );
- 1936 - "Pre-Vision" ( Eng. Pre-Vision );
- 1942 - “About enmity, about the past” ( Eng. About Quarrels, About the Past );
- 1943 - “Frivolous hat” ( Eng. Unthinking Cap );
- 1944 - “Invariant” ( Eng. Invariant );
- 1948 - “Periodic Part” ( Eng. Period Piece );
- 1952 - “The Good Life” ( Eng. The Good Life );
- 1953 - “ Mr. Kinkaid's Past” ( English Mr. Kinkaid's Pasts );
- 1962 - “The Future of John Jie” ( English John Sze's Future );
- 1966 - “I See No Evil ” ( Eng. See No Evil );
- 1969 - “Compassion” ( English Compassion );
- 1969 - “You will love the past” ( Eng. You'll Love the Past );
- 1970 - “Idling” ( Eng. Dry Run );
- 1970 - “To be a man” ( English To Be a Man );
- 1970 - “The Higher Things” ( Eng. The Higher Things ). The story is included in the fifth issue of the inter-author series “Professor Manderpootz” ( Eng. Professor Manderpootz );
- 1971 - “Exorcism” ( Eng. The Exorcism );
- 1971 - “Choice” ( Eng. Choice );
- 1973 - “ The Whimper Effect ”.
- 1959 - “In 2063, she will cease to exist” ( Eng. In 2063 She Ceased to Be );
- 1967 - “The Poetry of the Ancient Science Fiction, or Customs and Memories” ( The Rhyme of the SF Ancient Author, or Conventions and Recollections ).
Under the pseudonym JJ Coupling in Astounding Magazine:
- Probability Zero! (July, 1942) - under the real name
- Universes to Order (February, 1944)
- Little Enough (April, 1945)
- It Isn't So Easy (May 1945)
- Phony Atoms (May, 1946)
- Portrait of a Voice (July, 1946)
- Activity (November, 1946)
- Less Light, Please (March 1947)
- News from Our Sun (June, 1947)
- Broad Band (August, 1947)
- Stuck In The Mud (November, 1947)
- Maggie (February, 1948)
- The Little Blue Cells (February, 1949)
- Chance Remarks (October, 1949)
- Ergodic Prediction (February, 1950)
- How To Build a Thinking Machine (August, 1950)
- Science for Art's Sake (November, 1950)
- Don't Write: Telegraph! (March, 1952)
- Transistors (June, 1952)
- Space Heater (February, 1954)
- On Atomic Jets (January, 1955)
In Analog , the successor to Astounding :
- Real Science for Real Problems (April, 1971) - under the real name
Pierce's archives and manuscripts are now kept at the Huntington Library in San Marino , California [24] .
Interesting Facts
- While working at Bell Labs, Pierce led, in particular, the group in which the first transistor was manufactured. At the request of one of the employees - the future Nobel laureate Walter Brattein , Pierce coined the term "transistor". Pierce recalled:
In order to come up with a name for our device, I suggested looking at what it does. At that time it was supposed that it should be a double-antipode of a radio tube. The radio tube had high interelectrode conductivity (transconductance), so the transistor had to have interelectrode resistance (transresistance). Also, the name should fit into a number of names of other devices, such as a varistor and a thermistor. And ... I suggested the Transistor.
Original textThe way I provided the name, was to think of what the device did. And at that time, it was supposed to be the dual of the vacuum tube. The vacuum tube had transconductance, so the transistor would have "transresistance". And the name should fit in with the names of other devices, such as varistor and thermistor. And. . . I suggested the name "transistor".- John R. Pierce, Interview [25] for the Transistorized Television Broadcast! American television service PBS
- In 1962, Arthur Clark attended a demonstration by John Pearce of computer voice synthesis when the world's first IBM 7094 computer reproduced a human voice. The voice synthesizer was able to recreate the song Daisy Bell 19th century English composer Harry Daker . This moment made such a strong impression on Clark that he later decided to introduce this moment into Stanley Kubrick’s film “ Space Odyssey of 2001 ”. The film sounds the line "A Bicycle Built for Two" ( Russian. Bicycle for two ) from the song. In the film, the HAL 9000 computer sings it when its computer consciousness is destroyed by the astronaut Dave Bowman, one of the main characters in the film.
- In 1992, John Pierce signed the “ Warning to Humanity ” [26] .
- The literary pseudonym JJ Coupling is a reference to the term from quantum physics JJ coupling [27] .
Notes
- ↑ John R. Pierce. Telstar, A History . SMEC Vintage Electrics . Date of treatment April 18, 2012. Archived September 17, 2012.
- ↑ Arthur C. Clarke. John Robinson Pierce (Eng.) // Locus : Journal. - 2002. - No. 5 . - P. 69.
- ↑ John R. Pierce. 14. Consonance and scales // Music, Cognition, and Computerized Sound: An Introduction to Psychoacoustics / Edited by Perry R. Cook . - Cambridge : MIT Press , 2001 .-- P. 167-186. - 384 p. - ISBN 978-0-262-53190-0 .
- ↑ Kamin, Arthur Z. State Becomes a Part of Celebrating Marconi's Achievements . The New York Times (October 23, 1994). - “The recipient in 1979 was Dr. John R. Pierce, then of the California Institute of Technology who had been with AT&T Bell Laboratories at Murray Hill and at Holmdel. Dr. Pierce had lived in Berkeley Heights and now lives in Palo Alto, Calif. ” Date of treatment September 4, 2012. Archived October 4, 2012.
- ↑ Chris Chafe , John Chowning , John Sanford. Memorial Resolution: John Robinson Pierce (1910-2002) (English) (PDF) (link not available) 3. Stanford Report (March 31, 2005). Date of treatment October 20, 2015. Archived October 20, 2015.
- ↑ John R. Pierce at IEEE Morris N. Liebmann Memorial Award Recipients (PDF) 7. IEEE. Date of treatment October 19, 2015. Archived October 19, 2015.
- ↑ John R. Pierce at Franklin Laureate Database . The Franklin Institute. - “Year: 1960. Subject: Engineering. Award: Ballantine. Citation: Invention of Traveling Wave Tube Amplifier. Invention of Traveling Wave Tube Amplifier. ” Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ 1961-1976 Golden Plate Recipients (inaccessible link) . American Academy of Achievement. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ IEEE Edison Medal recipients (PDF) 6. IEEE. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ The President's National Medal of Science: Recipient Details. John Robinson Pierce The National Science Foundation. - "For his outstanding contributions to communications theory, electron optics and traveling wave tubes, and for the analysis leading to world-wide radio communications using artificial earth satellites." Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ John Scott Award Recipients 1971-1980 . The Franklin Institute. - "Invention in the development of the" Communications satellites "." Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ IEEE Medal of Honor recipients (PDF) 3. IEEE. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on September 19, 2012.
- ↑ Founders Award Winners 1966-1995 . National Academy of Sciences on behalf of the National Academy of Engineering. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ John R. Pierce. Awarded the Marconi Prize in 1979 . The Marconi Society. - “To recognize outstanding advances in space and satellite technologies relevant to improving world communications.”. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ LAUREATES; 1985 (1st) Japan Prize Laureates; Prize Category: Information and Communications; Dr. John R. Pierce (United States ) . The Japan Prize Foundation. Date of treatment September 5, 2012.
- ↑ Recipients of The Charles Stark Draper Prize . The National Academy of Engineering . The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ HALL OF FAME / Inventor Profile. John Pierce National Inventors Hall of Fame. Date of treatment October 19, 2015. Archived October 4, 2012.
- ↑ Honorary Degree Recipients Office of the Provost - Northwestern University (inaccessible link) . Office of the Provost of University of Northwestern University. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ Yale Honorary Degree Recipients (inaccessible link) . Yale University. Office of Digital Dissemination. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ Complete List of Recipients (1945-Present) Office of the Secretary of the University . Columbia University. Office of the Secretary of the University. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ University of Pennsylvania. Chronological Listing of Honorary Degrees . Office of the University of Pennsylvania Secretary. Date of treatment September 5, 2012.
- ↑ Speakers and Degree Recipients (English) ( XLS ). University of Southern California. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ John R. Pierce - Summary Bibliography . The Internet Speculative Fiction Database . Al von Ruff. Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ Edward E. David Jr. , Max V. Mathews , A. Michael Noll . John Robinson Pierce Biographical Memoirs . National Academies Press . Date of treatment September 4, 2012. Archived September 17, 2012.
- ↑ John Pierce. On naming the transistor . Interview for Transistorized! . Public Broadcasting Service . Date of treatment September 5, 2012. Archived on October 4, 2012.
- ↑ World Scientists' Warning To Humanity . Circulation date May 23, 2019.
- ↑ Love, Allan W. In Memory of Carl A. Wiley (Neopr.) // Antennas and Propagation Society Newsletter. - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers , 1985. - June. - S. 17-18 .